For Huhne the bell tolls

Lies have a tendency to catch up on people, and particularly
politicians, but rarely will you see a man turn around and jump on
the lurking knife of his own volition. It's taken 10 years, but
this morning Lib Dem MP Chris Huhne admitted to asking his ex-wife
Vicky Pryce to accept a speeding charge on his behalf back in 2003,
and perverting the course of justice. Back then he would merely
have faced a driving ban and damage to his political career: now
his crime comes with an all but guaranteed prison sentence. Huhne
immediately resigned as MP for Eastleigh, but by then his political
career was already over.

Some commentators are already claiming that Huhne's exit is a boon
to Nick Clegg - Huhne was once the Deputy Prime
Minister's fiercest rival for the party leadership - but in truth
he hasn't been a threat for some time, particularly since resigning
as energy and climate change secretary after being charged last
year. In reality, Huhne's departure is yet another setback for the
Lib Dems' increasingly damaged brand. It could get worse, too: the
Tories (and possibly UKIP) have already set their sights on a
much-needed by-election win in Huhne's now-departed marginal
seat.

As one would expect, Clegg has said that he is "shocked and
saddened" by the news. The same can't be said of Huhne's ex-wife,
who reportedly threw a party this weekend before he came clean to
the court.

Oliver Franklin-Wallis

Oliver Franklin is Assistant Editor of Wired and a GQ contributor. Follow him on Twitter @olifranklin.